Friday, 2 October 2015

At The Edge of Paradise. Part Two: NIAGARA FALLS

So here we are four long
days and nights in the jungle of New York City later. Dreams made, hearts
captured. I'm still trying to figure out what the unique 'Magic Thing' is about
that place and whether it’s available for free in a bottle. Why we really didn't want to
leave, why everyone we met along the way was exceptionally friendly and
welcoming. Why Soho is the coolest place I've ever stepped into and why we
totally forgot to factor within our budget the tipping costs of America. That's one thing about planning a
travelling trip. You can't really plan a travelling trip. So many unexpected
things happen which you have no control over; you have to just roll with it. Like
the fact that apparently I'm allergic to Shrimp. New York's national fish that left my leg numbed and gigantically swollen into a balloon like ball. I mean I probably
should of gone to A&E but I think I just one legged it to the closet bar and cosmopolitaned
it up as a way of getting through it. Moral - Expect the unexpected.

I want to wake up in a city

That doesn't sleep

And find I'm king of the hill

Top of the heap

-FrankSinatra

Once budgets were blown and New York had been done.Niagara
Falls was our next
super adventure destination, however we were in need of a motor to
get us there! So off we lugged with our overloaded bags to collect our ride atUs Rent A Car. Now two girls travelling across the country can
be seen as a little high risk so wesensiblyoptedfor something
safe and unnoticeablethat would practically get us fromA:New York -B: Los Angeles. To be honest I know nothing about cars and I still have no idea what type of car it was but I do know we immediately nick named
her (the car) THELMA and got on our merry way.

THELMA

Wifey had offered
to drive the first instalment of our 6 and 1/2 hour scheduled road trip to Niagara
Falls (International border between Canada and the United States). Car loaded
and synced to our favourite sing-a-long tunes we were in road trip heaven.
Talking of the road the American free way is a oversized beast. The lanes are vast and the
monster trucks scared the crap out of me. You also need to have toll money ready
between states (little tip) as we forgot to factor that in too!

But we made it. Home at Shivas Lodge thanks to the wife and our pre designated satellite navigation device. (That with time I learnt to read properly (More of an old fashioned map reading gal)

Our first ever Motel was
full of character, clean and exactly like the motel shots you see in American
Movies.

NIAGARA FALLS

As we set out early and vowed to never make a long journey after dark we arrived at the small town of Niagara quite early, with excitement dumping our travelling gear we headed straight to The Falls which is conveniently located just 3 miles from our temporary new home.

So in this
picture I appear to be smiling. I mean I was happily blown away by the sheer
size of this historic landmark. It just didn't seem real, genuinely feeling like
a dream with a mixture of bizarre emotions. I think it's because of how
untypical the day had already been, from leaving the big city to then driving
for 7 hours and then casually off to see one of the golden wonders of
the world. I mean WHAT THE F! I vividly remember us both feeling overwhelmed
by it all and tremendously lucky to be able
to experience it.

Oh I have to mention that if you
suffer from vertigo brace yourself as you are 165 ft high overlooking over the
falls. That gap below the barrier has a mighty steep drop. Yes definitely not
typical.

MAID OF THE MIDST

After a dazed while taking
in the Falls from above we caught our breath and decided to jump right into
the experience by booking a ticket for the Maid of The Mist which is a strongly
powered boat that takes you from the docks past the American falls into the
basin of the roaring Canadian horse shoe falls. You are provided with
a souvenir Maid of the Midst waterproof poncho as you soak in
the sensational view around you. 'A historical ride aboard the
world-famous Maid of the Mist is a half hour thrill of a lifetime and North
America's oldest tourist attraction since establishing in 1846.'

Us after being
physically thrown across a boat and a good old soaking from the historic waterfalls.

We Were
There.

To
be continued...........
A post I know I will look back on when I'm 95 and say we did that.